Dragon*Con 2013 Interviews: Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney

Description

Out of the wilderness, an attorney. A cosplayer swings by to tell me about the law-based game that may have started it all, Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney. We dive into scenarios that happen in the story, and also touch upon some of the unique mechanics that the title brought to the table. We all know LA Noire, the more modern detective title, but it’s totally cool to hear the history. In generally, any games with detective elements tend to interest me. Add to that my totally natural and not at all extreme fascination with law, and, you know what? My wallet just opens up and the cash flies towards the developer. What’s that? The game doesn’t come with a law book instead of a regular game guide? Ugh, no! SO CLOSE to perfection!

Credits

Filmed by: Joseph Pereira

Dragon*Con 2013 Interviews: Dr. Zoidberg

Description

In this video, I speak to a cosplayer that decided to dress up as one of the most repulsive creatures ever, Dr. Zoidberg. (This is a great time to be happy that the Smell-o-Vision was never invented, folks… we certainly dodged a bullet there.) But I kid, I kid – unlike his animated counterpart, this cosplayer didn’t smell of rotten garbage, or anything like that. He emulated pretty much everything else correctly, including Zoidberg’s voice, mannerisms, and as you’ll soon see… his medical knowledge as well.

Credits

Filmed by: Joseph Pereira

Dragon*Con 2013 Interviews: Cecil Sinclaire and Carla Rhodes

Description

Watch as I survive a close encounter with Cecil Sinclaire, notorious evil-doer and general prankster. Carla Rhodes, rock n’ roll ventriloquist takes a moment to talk about her and Cecil, while also casually mentioning that she’s promoting his demonic ways through her show, The Plight of Cecil (part of Dragon Con 2013’s puppetry track). Carla’s the first ventriloquist that I see at the Con, and after catching a glimpse of the evil residing deep within Cecil’s eyes, I don’t think I’ll forget her any time soon.

Credits

Featuring: Cecil Sinclaire and Carla Rhodes

Filmed by: Joseph Pereira

Dragon*Con 2013 Interviews: Characters from Assassin’s Creed

Transcript

Matt Refghi: Hello, sir. I was attracted by your sign over here – you hope that there are no assassins around –

Dave: Oh yes.

Matt: Pardon?

Dave: Oh, yes, I’m scared of the assassins… very scared.

Matt: So yesterday I saw some Splinter Cell guys hanging around, you know, with the night vision and all that, I was a little concerned – (emphasizing) I was a little concerned when I saw this, ’cause I was like “yea… there’s some people around that might hurt you.”

Dave: There’s many people around that might hurt me, but when you’re British you get quite used to that happening.

Matt: (laughs) Okay, and this costume: where’s it from, specifically?

Dave: Okay, specifically, it’s a British red coat officer’s uniform, from the 30th ??? regiment. Somewhat modded. And the game in question, I’m sure everyone knows, is Assassin’s Creed 3 where as a red coat in that game, once the assassins are around, you’ve got a life expectancy of micro-seconds.

Matt: Well, that’s understandable, it’s understandable, and I like that the red kind of matches with the Star Trek. I’m sure there’s more historical significance there –

Dave: Yes.

Matt: … but the red shirt, yeah, you’re in trouble, my friend.

Dave: Oh, yes.

Matt: Across multiple universes. But how do you personally feel about Assassin’s Creed, the series?

Dave: I have only really played Assassin’s Creed 3, but I think it’s wonderful, and I’m really ??? so I’m going to get the other games when I get back from the UK, because they’re cheap now apart from anything else.

Matt: So you are from the UK, yourself?

Dave: Yes, I’m actually from the UK and I flew in just for Dragon Con and to see some friends, and it’s amazing.

Matt: Alright, and it’s your first time?

Dave: Yes, Dragon Con virgin.

Matt: Are you (laughs), that’s fine. Are you… have you been bitten by the bug? (Uses right hand to simulate a bug biting his left arm.)

Dave: Oh, yeah, I’m back next year. I’ll going to sell a kidney if I have to get here.

Matt: Sell a kidney, okay well, that might be worth it, might be worth it.

Dave: Yeah…. I don’t use them for much anyway.

Matt: Right… and so I remember, you know, there’s a lot of pride in Montreal with Ubisoft having created this because they’re really a well-renowned studio.

Dave looks to his right, and suddenly runs, terrified. He hands Matt the microphone while doing so. Matt looks stunned as two assassins pass by, clearly the ones that scared Dave off.

Matt: (To the assassins) Okay, guys, well, you know, you just scared off my interview.

Brent: Sorry about that.

Jonathan shrugs slightly, but in manner that suggests he was just doing his job – not very apologetic.

Matt: But it’s alright, so I guess you’re fulfilling your role here. So how do you guys feel about the Assassin’s Creed franchise?

Brent: We feel pretty good about it.

Matt: Enough to dress up certainly.

Brent: Yes, certainly.

Jonathan: Huge fan.

Brent: Played all the games.

Matt: I’ve played the first one, really enjoyed it, I’ve also… but that was it.

Brent: Yeah, they get better from there.

Matt: They get better?

Brent: Yeah.

Matt: Excellent.

Brent: 2 is probably my favorite, and Brotherhood, those are two are probably my favorite ones. But yeah, they’re all really fun to play.

Matt: I like the concept of Brotherhood, the whole thing about having assassins that work for you.

Brent: Yeah.

Matt: So your names, by the way.

Brent: I’m Brent.

Jonathan: … and I’m Jonathan.

Matt: Okay, cool. So I like the costumes, and I’m also wondering: you’re probably seeing other assassin’s creed brothers of yours around, right?

Brent: This is true, we have been.

Matt: Have you been huddling around in groups trying to be stealthy?

Brent: Um, yeah, I mean…

Jonathan: Gotta stay sneaky.

Brent: … we have the hoods, and apparently that just works, so, as long as we have them up, it’s fine.

Matt: If there’s one place where you can blend in to a, you know, crowd, I think it’s here. I think there’s a lot of variety.

Jonathan: That’s true, so many people… it’s difficulty to pinpoint targets in crowds.

Matt: Well, you get to choose, you know. You have an abundance, you can just go to town.

Brent: Exactly. Like that guy, we had to get that guy. (Gesturing to direction Dave fled.)

Matt: How long have you been stalking him?

Brent: For a while, we’ve seen him off and on. He’s a big target priority, so, you know.

Jonathan: Let’s be honest, the sign kind of gives him away.

Matt: Yea, it makes him a juicy target, right?

Brent: Oh, yeah.

Matt: Alright, quite cool, guys. I hope you enjoy the Con.

Brent: You too.

Matt: That’s it. Thank you.

Brent: Alright, thank you.

Matt: And try not to kill him, leave him alone.

Brent: Might just give him a punishment.

Jonathan: Can’t make any promises.

Matt: Can’t make any promises.

Jonathan: Can’t make any promises.

Matt: That’s alright. You’re assassins, but don’t you have like a code? Don’t assassins have a code?

Jonathan: We do.

Matt: But if an assassin has a code to not assassinate, there’s a problem.

Jonathan: Exactly.

Brent: That’s true… I mean, it is our job, it’s what we have to do.

Jonathan: Templars take priority.

Matt: Alright.

Brent: We only kill bad people, or at who we consider bad people, so there’s that.

Jonathan: Alright, well, (referring to Dave) he’s pure evil, so go ahead.

Jonathan: Indeed.

Brent: Fun talk.

Matt: Thanks, guys.

Jonathan: Take care, man.

Scene cuts to Matt standing next to Dave, who looks slightly uneasy.

Matt: Dave, I’m really happy to see you, because I just… they just chased you off, and I’m sorry… but I interviewed them.

Dave: Yea, I think I got away with it, though, I think I’ve lost them, and I don’t think they’re coming back.

Matt: Okay, well that’s what –

Brent and Jonathan enter the frame separately, from the left and rides sides, respectively. They are approaching Dave rapidly, and he’s starting to be become aware of their presence. Jonathan stabs Dave in the back before Brent is able to do so himself. Brent is limping slightly and supporting his back as if it was in pain.

Matt: (Looking down at Dave‘s body) Oh, no… what…

Brent shrugs while looking at Jonathan, who also shrugs but in more of a “what? that’s how it’s done” type way. Jonathan leaves the scene, and is then followed by Brent, who took a moment to shrug in disappointment once more before leaving.

Matt places the microphone on the ground, and runs away from the scene, into the crowd.

An female thief in an Assassin’s Creed costume calmly walks in from the left, crouches next to Dave‘s corpse, and starts searching Dave‘s body. She feel around to see if he has anything in his pockets, and finally decides to steal his Con badge, which is attached to his belt. She stands up, satisfied, and calmly walks off to the right.

Credits

Featuring: Dave, Brent, and Jonathan.

Filmed by: Joseph Pereira

Dragon*Con 2013 Interviews: Brady Bunch Adults

Transcription

Matt Refghi: Hi everyone, I’m here with the Brady Bunch… or part of the Brady Bunch, it would appear.

Carol: The parents… and our main support Alice.

Matt Refghi: They have a very nice sign, I really want to point out. They’re gonna trade their kids for beer, essentially.

Mike: Yes.

Matt Refghi: And it seems they’ve already traded one.

Mike: We have. We traded one, yes. Was that Jan?

Carol: No no no, it was Greg, because he’s 18, he’s ready to move on.

Matt Refghi: Okay, so when it comes to trading… so he was 18 – okay, I see – he was the most appropriate one to trade, because he’s already almost out.

Mike: Correct, correct.

Matt Refghi: Would you be interested in getting, like, Vodka, for a certain child?

Alice: I would take Vodka.

Matt Refghi: Right – and what’s the criteria for trading children?

Mike: Alice does all the work, so she should really decide.

Carol: Alice gets all of the alchohol, because honestly I kinda just go out and go to PTA stuff and –

Alice: He goes to work, she goes to PTA, but I’m the one doing all the work around here, and I’m the one who gets to say what we trade for, so yes, I would accept Vodka.

Matt Refghi: Okay, but we’re getting into a little bit of a grey zone, we’re talking about trading children.

Carol: Yes.

Matt Refghi: But it’s all in good fun.

Carol: It’s all in good fun. We really do not have six children, so it’s probably okay.

Matt Refghi: (points to sign) You have five.

Carol: We have five, we have five.

Matt Refghi: Right now, right now. You’re working on that… so that’s great. Is this your first Dragon Con?

Carol: No, this would be our fourth Dragon Con.

Matt Refghi: That’s great, same here.

Mike: Alright, fantastic.

Matt Refghi: And where are you from?

Carol: We’re from Atlanta. Alice…

Mike: We live in Atlanta.

Alice: I’m from Minneapolis, so I come and visit them, and we hang out and we come to Dragon Con every couple years.

Matt Refghi: Is it the first time you dress up together?

Carol: No, no. Last year we were nuns, but we were all different themes – I was a zombie nun, he was a Jedi nun, and she was an actual holy nun.

Matt Refghi: (enumerating with fingers, thoughtful) Jedi, holy, zombie. How does the holy live with the zombie? That’s kind of like… opposites.

Carol: Never, no, I ate her brains.

Mike: (laughs)

Matt Refghi: Oh, okay. But then is she (laughs) is she still a holy – okay, is that why the costume won’t be used again?

Mike: Yeah, yeah.

Carol: Yeah, it’s done.

Matt Refghi: That’s too bad, but it had it’s run.

Alice: It had its run, you know, it was a good time – but you can’t do the same thing every year.

Carol: Yesterday, actually, my husband and I were nominated – we had a card to be for the wall of fame or whatever, we were Cleopatra yesterday, so the Dragon Con staff nominated us and had our picture taken.

Matt Refghi: Congratulations!

Mike: Yes, we’re so excited.

Matt Refghi: Good job.

Carol: So… lots of Dragon Con.

Matt Refghi: Yeah… do you foresee an end to your attendance? I doubt it.

Mike: (convinced) No… no… no.

Carol: Not at this point, unless they move it to the convention centre, at which point that might do it for me – it needs to stay in the hotels. I’m very solid about that point.

Matt Refghi: Yea, I like it too – I like just wandering around. We come from up north, we’re from Canada.

Carol: Okay.

Matt Refghi: But we still fly down every year, so (laughs), it’s cool. Um, one more question regarding the costumes you had before: between the zombie and the Jedi, who would win? Because that’s the two remaining contenders.

Mike: (recognizing the theoretical duel for its natural awesomeness) Ooooooo

Alice: I think the Jedi would win.

Matt Refghi: I would hope so, otherwise what type of a Jedi are we talking about?

Mike: (laughs)

Alice: Because he’s quick and agile, and he has a weapon.

Matt Refghi: And he has… exactly.

Carol: Zombies aren’t very smart, they just say brains and try to eat them. He would cut my head off before I could get at him, so I think he would, yeah.

Matt Refghi: Okay, but it depends… is it a 28 days later zombie, or a Romero zombie? Like, fast or slow?

Carol: No, it’s more like a 28 days later zombie.

Matt Refghi: Okay, okay… so it’s a fair fight, then, but the Jedi should win if he’s competent.

Carol: Jedi should win. But in this battle, I’m Mrs. Brady…

Matt Refghi: You would naturally win.

Carol: I would win over him…

Mike: No, no.

Carol: …but Alice wins over all of us.

Matt Refghi: (Suddenly understanding) Ooooooh.

Mike: (laughs)

Carol: And by the way, if anyone wants to trade a kid, Jan is next on the list because she whines all of the time, are we in agreement on that?

Alice: Absolutely, I’m tired of the Marcia, Marcia, Marcia business.

Carol: It’s always about whining about Marcia, so we’re ready to get rid of Jan, so if anyone wants to give us a beer, we will give you Jan.

Matt Refghi: Maybe half a beer for Jan?

Alice: I would take half a beer for Jan, yes I would.

Matt Refghi: That’s bargaining.

Alice: At this point, late in the day, we need to work on this.

Matt Refghi: So, half a beer. (To camera) You know where to get to if you want a child. (To guests) Excellent, it’s great meeting you. Um, I hope you have a great con!

Mike: Great con already.

Matt Refghi: Thanks for interviewing.

Credits

Filmed by: Joseph Pereira

Dragon*Con 2013 Interviews: The Doctor (Introduction to Dr. Who)

Description

Though I knew very little of the famous Doctor, actor/writer John Reid Adams happily helped me get up to speed. Though John did most of the talking in this, I really felt that the video could have gone on for much longer, and I would have continued to be just as interested. Since this was filmed, I started watching the 2005 version of Doctor Who, and I absolutely love the concept. So, just like I did, if you want an introduction to the Doctor, try starting here.

Transcription

Matt Refghi: So, hello, sir.

John Reid Adams: Hello, how’s it going?

Matt: I saw you here, and I wanted to mention – you look like you’re from the Doctor Who universe.

John: Oh, very much so. Fifty years, I’d say it’s a safe bet.

Matt: Fifty years. (laughs) And I wanted to know, because I’m not familiar with Doctor Who, but I know a lot of people love it. A lot my friends tells me that it’s great.

John: Indeed.

Matt: I’ve seen a scarf around that people reference as Doctor Who.

John: Yes, well that’s like a badge of honor for a lot of people, years ago, when the fourth Doctor in the 1970s, when people were like “oh, that’s the bloke with the scarf, innit?”

Matt: Cool, so I like references like that. And I kind of wanted to know, alright, people love this, there’s a lot of references to the show, and I was curious about that. And I wanted to know… when it comes to a series like Doctor Who, where do we start? Because I know there’s a lot of history.

John: Well, for a lot of people, especially in the case of Americans, I feel it’s personally best to start with the new series with Christopher Eccleston, and move forward from there. Like you do with other television series, and once you do become up to speed on that, then I say, you know, jump back and start watching the classic series, but don’t, you’re not required to have to start at the beginning, and move forward. There are actually wonderful stories from different eras you start with, because, one thing I’m discovering is with modern audiences nowadays, we, you know, we love production value, we love special effects, but the thing is the series back then, like most television series back then, were not famed for their elaborate special effects. We watched Star Trek, the old Star Trek, and we could see the seam on the mustache! That’s not working! That’s not working there, so you really have to cash in on the story and the acting, especially with Doctor  Who being from England – they invited acting! They invited good writing, so that’s kind of what kept the show going, so the story telling is the main thing that kept that show running for so long, and that’s why it’s still as popular as it is, you know, for fifty odd years.

Matt: Great, great. I wanted to, as you discussing this, mentioning this, you said the special effects…  it reminds me of Red Dwarf. Because Red Dwarf also British, special effects… not the best, especially at the start, especially, but there’s still a charm to that.

John: It’s… and a lot of it has to do with the characters. You love the characters, and the writing, and see that’s all you need – frankly, in the end, anything, that’s all you need. After all, you watch Evil Dead 2, the special effects are pretty rubbish, but you know you watch it because it’s bloody hilarious.

Credits

Featuring: John Reid Adam

Filmed by: Joseph Pereira

One of the Last Known Survivors

I recently began going through my old belongings in an effort to clear out the excess that I’d accumulated over the years, and in doing so, I encountered a particular item that proved problematic. You see, the item in question was a 3 1/2 floppy drive, you know, the old technology that no one uses these days. I specifically remembered that I had never actually tested it – so it was highly possible that the thing wasn’t even functional to begin with. Not only that, but the drive had other flaws: it was beige (a color that most people aren’t interested in), and plus, it was wrapped in plastic wrap – a material that may conduct low amounts of static electricity. I clearly recalled wrapping it, way back when, and the idea was to protect it from dust; unfortunately, I failed to consider the damage the static electricity might do.

In any case, what this all meant was that I had a highly undesirable item that might not even work – but yet, I wasn’t the type to just throw stuff away. So instead of just popping it into the recycling bin in the hopes that the city’s services would know what to do, I figured I’d have some fun with it. The result was the following: an ad I posted on Kijiji, a classified ad site.

A Kijiji ad titled: Old and Most Probably Broken Floppy Drive

Here’s the text if you rather read off this page:

“Old and Most Probably Broken Floppy Drive

I offer you one of the last known survivors of a dying race, the common floppy drive. This mighty warrior has a long history of interpreting complex arrangements of 0s and 1s, the twisted language of machines. After such a illustrious career, he had but one wish in life: to die with dignity. Instead, he was found wrapped in plastic wrap, a material that may very well conduct small amounts of static electricity, the one weakness of his kind. This offer is therefore made with a certain sadness, as the aforementioned hero may not actually be alive, behind his clingy but transparent coffin. But one thing is certain, my friends… he has written, and he has read.”

The little joke resulted in some really amusing e-mails from the people that caught sight of it. One guy replied with:

“Nice. What about to send it to the garbage?”

To which I replied:

“A hero deserves a chance at rebirth, or at the very least, the finest of funerals.”

Naturally, I didn’t really care that much about the drive – but I had invested myself in the romantic tale of a dying warrior, and I figured I’d continue having fun with it. It seemed like a better alternative than just chucking it in the trash and calling it a day.

If you enjoyed this post, I highly recommend you read Understanding the Balloon.

TV Review: The Walking Dead – S01E01 – Days Gone Bye

This is one of two reviews from All Too Convenient, a project I recently cancelled. It was originally published on October 18th, 2012, and features a humor-based writing style. Hope you enjoy!

Spoiler Level: Mild

Yep, a zombie TV show – a slightly different take on a genre that’s been done to death, so to speak. When I heard about it, I liked the fact that it was a TV show, not a movie, and that it was based in Atlanta (a city I frequent yearly), so I bought the first season and got to watching. Here’s a brief description I got off Wikipedia in case you never heard of it:

The series stars Andrew Lincoln as sheriff’s deputy Rick Grimes, who awakens from a coma to find the world dominated by flesh-eating “walkers,” resembling the zombies of George A. Romero’s horror movies. He sets out to find his family and encounters other survivors along the way.

The episode starts off with the main character, Rick, looking for gas while walking through a field that’s full of broken cars. He sees plenty of overturned vehicles, a rotting corpse, an empty donut box (sorry, Rick), but not much else. It’s pretty clear that no one’s throwing a party in there, it’s silent, it’s creepy, and there doesn’t appear to be any gas around. Then he hears a sound, and eventually identifies the source: a little girl that’s slowly trudging along in a pair of bunny slippers and a bathrobe, both of which are dirty. In her left hand is a stuffed animal, but there’s one catch: Rick can’t see her face, only her back. He tries to tell her he’s friendly, and a cop, but she doesn’t react immediately. There’s a lot of screen time devoted to the sequence, and the silence plays a major role in building an ambiance. But then, the expected happens – the girl stops walking.

UH-OH, THIS SHIT’S ABOUT TO GET REAL. Message received, writers, it’s all lining up to be a shocking zombie reveal. The signs are all there: the creepy silence, the fact that the girl had her head conveniently turned away from us the whole time (while being perfectly centered in the screen), and finally, they spend a lot of screen time focusing on her. If there’s one thing I dislike, it’s predictable storylines. I remember hoping that she would turn around and have a golden retriever’s face, that way I would actually be taken aback. But instead, she turns around to reveal that she’s… wait for it… a zombie! SURPRISE. Really, guys? Why not do something creative where she’s a human, or a human that’s right about to turn into a zombie, something like that? Why do exactly what everyone expects you to do?

Well, anyway, it wasn’t long until the little girl realized that she had a sudden craving for some pork, and started shuffling forward to get her first bite. Rick, clearly disturbed by someone so young having been transformed, reluctantly (but violently) puts a hole in her forehead using his magnum. The scene then cuts to a bad computer generated (CG) death sequence, one that shows the zombie girl falling to the ground, her stuffed animal rolling away. It’s at that moment that the dramatic theme music starts, and the intro sequence for The Walking Dead begins.

As you can see, the writers were trying to show how dramatic the zombie illness was, and used a little girl as a way to shock the audience. Unfortunately, in my case, the scene was too predictable, and it took away from the realism of the show, something that I value greatly. Now, there’s something else I’d like to mention: normally, a bad CG scene can bring a potentially good show to its knees, realism-wise, but in this case, I really didn’t mind. You see, it’s not often that kids are killed on-screen, as it’s understandably a bit disturbing for people to see – even video games typically shy away from such violence (not that I, uh, tried). Therefore, I don’t mind that it was clearly a faked death sequence. As an animator, wouldn’t that be a really creepy thing to have on your resume, too? “Little girl getting shot in the face.” Dude, it’s a child.

Aside from the first scene’s predictability, I do have positive things to say about the show. First of all, it has one of the best title sequences I’ve seen, and a great soundtrack by Bear McCreary (best known for Battlestar Galactica). But also, there was a point in the episode where I genuinely thought that the main character would die, and that, ladies and gents, is not something that happens often. It also seemed that The Walking Dead had a fairly high budget, despite the bad CG scene I mentioned earlier. I won’t get into details, but I can say that both the zombies and the violence generally looked awesome.

In the end, it’s best to approach this type of show expecting a typical zombie story, because that’s pretty much what it is. It’s sometimes flawed, sometimes predictable, and sometimes impressive – a fine mix for this type of blog.

TV Review: Continuum – S01E01 – A Shift in Time

This is one of two reviews from All Too Convenient, a project I recently cancelled. It was originally published on October 13th, 2012, and features a humor-based writing style. Hope you enjoy!

Spoiler Level: Mild

I finally got around to watching Continuum in the last few days, and felt like sharing a little bit of the ridiculousness with you all. Ever since the creation of Corner Gas, I’ve been desperately awaiting the arrival of a TV-show that would allow us Canadians to regain some of our dignity. Yes, I realize that it’s a comedy, and Continuum isn’t, and I also realize some of you actually like Brent Butt‘s monstrosity of a TV-series, but can’t quite understand why that is. But, you know, to each his own. Anyway, I felt like Canada had a chance after the drunken arrival of the so-called Trailer Park Boys, and although Continuum isn’t a comedy, it’s one of the most recent examples of a Canadian show that I felt had some hope of being respected and watched beyond the border. In case you haven’t heard of it, here’s what they’re saying on Wikipedia:

When a group of rebels convicted as terrorists escape execution by fleeing from the year 2077 to 2012, Kiera Cameron, a future Vancouver law enforcement officer (called Protector), is involuntarily transported with them. In order to track them down and keep them from changing the past (and presumably future), Kiera joins the Vancouver Police Department and uses the skills of a young tech expert [to help locate and apprehend the criminals].

A high-tech “Protector” finds herself in our time, and has to cope with all of our old-school silliness while fighting a highly skilled team of evildoers. It didn’t take long for me to like the concept, but there’s this one scene at the start of the pilot that really made me roll my eyes. You see, the ass-kicking Kiera soon finds out she’ll need to go into work for one big event, the aforementioned execution. It’s at that time that we find out she has a little boy, Sam. We meet him when he walks up in his PJs, and asks his mother if she’s expecting to fight a galactic war anytime soon, or something like that. His mother crouches before him and assures him that no, everything will be fine, and soon the bad guys won’t be able to hurt anybody.

The camera then finds itself over Kiera’s shoulder, and we see the oh-so-cute little Sammy looking down at his Mom with an innocent and fragile gaze. “Do you have to go?” he asks, perhaps realizing that the galactic war would occur nonetheless, by way of TV destiny. Kiera explains that she’s simply doing her job, and little Sammy looks down at a little toy soldier he has in his hands, lifts it up, and figures he’ll do something totally adorable and predictable. He says the toy soldier is for her, and it’s in case she needs backup, which of course results in widespread AWWWs across the country. His mom smiles warmly, there’s this warm but slightly-dramatic music playing at the same time, and I can’t help but know with certainty that Sammy isn’t gonna see his mom for quite a while. Something’s gonna go down.

To me, it was very clear that they were trying to show the audience something: LOOK, KID ADORABLE, MOTHER WUV. Yes, writers and directors of Continuum, I get it. I see what you’re trying to show, but did you have to be so obvious about it? Do you think people typically have the chance to say proper goodbyes, when real tragic accidents or events occur? That’s not how real life works, in my experience, and there’s value in supporting a certain realism. The loss of Sammy could have been illustrated without spelling it out in such a way that everybody’s pets could understand it too. And that little toy soldier bit, give me a break. Ain’t it a little convenient that he whips out that little number right before his mother gets transported 65 years into the past?

We’re human! Show little Sammy in a natural, organic everyday moment with his mother, and then reveal the look on his mother’s face when she realizes that she won’t be able to see him again. To me, that’s one of the most fascinating things about acting – facial expressions, the show-but-don’t-tell method of conveying an emotion. Hell, if you want to drive the point home, just set up a scene with that little toy soldier, and have her look at it ever-so-briefly, and show her facial expression during the process. Subtle, you know? Not over-the-top by staging a scene where we all get to bathe in just how precious and fragile little Sammy is.

Oh, and in saying this, I’m talking to TV writers everywhere, not only the folks from Continuum. As a whole, Continuum remains an interesting show, and a Canadian one at that – so I’m certainly planning to continue watching. I just hope they try to stay away from moments of extreme convenience like the one I highlighted today. I want to be surprised and challenged, not placed on rails while waiting for cliché after cliché to hit me in the face.